Shadowed Hearts
by xelloss-samaismine
Summary: Please R&R,PLEASE! A mystery woman gives Lina an odd box, and who's that in the shadows?2nd Chapter up
1. Mystery Gift

PLEASE REVIEW IF YOU READ IT! EVEN IF U DON'T LIKE IT! ************************************************************************ CHAPTER 1 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Zoe-Okaru had been watching this group long enough. She would never get what she wanted if she didn't act; watching was getting her nothing more than heat damaged hair as Lina had fireballed nearby. I think their lives will shortly become much more interesting, she thought to herself as she planned how she would get that power.  
  
Lina and Gourry had filled their stomachs enough to relax and lean back on their chairs as they waited to be brought more food. Zelgadiss and Amelia had learned to wait until now to even set food on the table, lest they be attacked in the frenzy. A short woman, with teal hair and seemingly endless ripples of long dark blue cloth draped as a robe around her body, slid up to the table, and in a nervous voice, asked, "Ar...Are you Lina Inverse? I, I.. I was supposed to give this to you." The woman gave Lina a small wooden brown box, that was covered with worn and unreadable words engraved in it. Lina looked at the box, then at the woman. There was something off about her, it was partly just that for all of her stammering and her squeaky voice, ahe didn't she any tension, or any emotion at all. She had no inflection in her eyes and no movement in her face. It seemed there was something else though, but Lina dismissed this. Maybe the box was worth something. "Um, thanks? Who are you, and what's with this stupid box?" The woman forcibly tensed up, and replied, "I'm so sorry ma'am, my name is Zoe Arowe, and the explantion, as well as directions to my current house, are inside the box." She pointed out the latches, and stepped back just as the waiter arrived, and would have collided with her. By then, they were all to distracted to notice, or care, that Zoe was gone.  
  
Zoe-Okaru snickered to herself, this would be easy. All she had to do was keep up the messenger act until she lured them into handing her the orbs. She was still laughing as she climbed up the stairs of her tower. 


	2. Insides

Lina fiddled with the latches on the box. The girl had pointed them out, but the meal had come before she could explain how to open it. What was odd though, was that Zoe had left, instead of waiting the meal out, like most had done in the past. Amelia had suggested that Lina and Gourry's table manners had scared her off, but was cut short and ended the comment with something along the lines of: "I'm so sorry, Lina-san!!!!!!!!!!!! I didn't mean it!!!! I was kidding, see? Ha ha ha, see?" Lina finally decided smashing it on the table was the best approach, but before she could bring it down, Amelia snatched it out of her hands. "It might be valuable, or important! And you might wake every one in the lodge up, trying that way. Maybe this writing on the outside says how to open it." Lina scowled at Amelia, the annoying child was starting to act like she knew everything, and it was really wearing on Lina's nerves. "Don't you think I thought of that! It's all worn off. Wait, I think I can rea- Wha! It's opening it's self! That's oddly convenient." Lina dropped the box on the table, as it slowly, much too slowly for Lina's tastes, opened up. "At that speed it'll take 15 minutes! Unh....."  
  
Zoe-Okaru fiddled boredly, watching out of her window. The only problem with her plan was waiting for those idiots that were unfortunately crucial to her plans, to figure out how to open the message-box. Then there were the other problems. How would she convince them to cast the exact spells she needed? Not to mention when she needed; but she had done too much to give up now. It was simple; she'd just wait more. Eventually they would cast each of the spells. She spiraled back onto her bed, where she could more comfortably wait. By the time it had completely opened, Lina had lost interest and was combing through her hair, not remembering it until an hour or so later, and Amelia was already asleep. She reached into the box, and found two pieces of paper, and two odd looking necklaces. One piece of paper was a map to a building she had seen on their way into town; the other was a long note. Lina Inverse, please bring the necklaces to the place signified on the map. They are extremely important, and it may be an issue of life and death. The rest of it went on about the box, and obviously was not important. She skimmed through it, and noticed the last sentence was underlined several times. It read: Let the necklaces choose for themselves. "Huh. Hey, Amelia. AME-LIA. AMELIA! WAKE UP!" 


End file.
